September 08, 2023 | Be On Mission
Ananias Brings Charges to Gov. Felix
Scripture: Acts 24:1-9(NIV)
1 Five days later the high priest Ananias went down to Caesarea with some of the elders and a lawyer named Tertullus, and they brought their charges against Paul before the governor. 2 When Paul was called in, Tertullus presented his case before Felix: “We have enjoyed a long period of peace under you, and your foresight has brought about reforms in this nation. 3 Everywhere and in every way, most excellent Felix, we acknowledge this with profound gratitude. 4 But in order not to weary you further, I would request that you be kind enough to hear us briefly.
5 “We have found this man to be a troublemaker, stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the Nazarene sect 6 and even tried to desecrate the temple; so we seized him. 8 By examining him yourself you will be able to learn the truth about all these charges we are bringing against him.”
9 The other Jews joined in the accusation, asserting that these things were true.
Devotional
Remember, the Sanhedrin was the seat of power in the Jewish religious establishment. It was this group that pressured the Roman governor to crucify Jesus. Now, some twenty-seven years later, they were still dealing with Jesus through His followers. And Paul was their biggest problem.
So they sent their most important man in Jerusalem to deal with him. The high priest Ananias went with an entourage of elders to present their case before Governor Felix in Caesarea. They took along a lawyer named Tertullus. His name and the words of his speech indicate that Tertullus was possibly a Roman. The Jewish high priest would do whatever it took to rid the earth of Paul.
In his speech, Tertullus accused Paul of being a troublemaker, ringleader, and blasphemer. For the good of the Jewish people and their Roman occupiers, Paul should be executed so that this Nazarene sect of Jesus followers would go away. Ananias and the elders with him joined the lawyer in the accusations.
By all accounts, Christianity should not have survived. In the first quarter century of the Christian movement, the apostles and evangelists took the gospel to what is modern-day Italy, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Ukraine, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, India, Egypt, Ethiopia and much more. Persecution awaited them at every stop. All of the apostles of Jesus were martyred, with the exception of John who was exiled to the prison island of Patmos. In addition to them, martyrdom awaited Paul, Timothy, Barnabas, and many, many others in the decades and centuries to come.
In the year 197 AD, early church theologian Tertullian addressed the Roman Empire with these profound words: “That’s why you can’t just exterminate us; the more you kill the more we are. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. You praise those who endured pain and death – so long as they aren’t Christians! Your cruelties merely prove our innocence of the crimes you charge against us… And you frustrate your purpose. Because those who see us die, wonder why we do, for we die like the men you revere, not like slaves or criminals. And when they find out, they join us.”
Give praise to God for those who have endured persecution and faced death in order to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world.
Poem
Drip, Drip, Drip
Drip, drip, drip
The spittle foul
Poisoned flattery
To season
To butter-up
To tenderize
To compromise
The heart of power
To spice the lies
To baste the trap
To stab the knife
To turn the wheels
Of justice
Drip, drip, drip
